Comedy Meltdown with Paul F. Tompkins

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Date/Time:Fri., December 11, 8:00pm

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Price: $8

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Warm Up To Meltdown

By Nicole Campos

For the better part of two years now, Comedy Meltdown has offered one of the most consistently fantastic laugh lineups in town, overtaking the gallery space in the rear of the mighty Meltdown Comics on Sunset once a month with a reliably killer slate of standups, which has featured Dana Gould, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Aziz Ansari, Maria Bamford and a ton more. It’s with a sad typeface, then, that we have to impart the news that this month’s Comedy Meltdown Grand Finaleis likely to be the last for a while: Booker extraordinaire Linda Pine is putting the show on hiatus, and though you shouldn’t count ComMelt out yet, you should definitely be there on Friday to send it off with a bang. Paul F. Tompkins headlines, which is reason enough to get your yucks in, as well as the free frosty beer included with the cover charge. Plus, you can get your Christmas shopping done for the beloved comic-book geeks in your life at the same time.

COMEDY MELTDOWN 23 – THE END?

Linda Pine is the impresario behind Comedy Meltdown, the super-successful comedy revue that took place at the Melt Gallery at Meltdown over the past two years. As Comedy Meltdown comes to a close and a new chapter for the Melt Gallery begins, the ever-inquisitive Marz Richards bothered Linda over a period of hours via electronic communiqué to establish this informative dialogue which we now present to you.

Q. Aggggggh! It’s over? It’s really over? This is the last Comedy Meltdown? What are we to do with ourselves?

A.Cry into your respective pillows.

Q. Booking anything in Los Angeles is a whirlwind gig, crushing your email and phone lines and consuming your focus. What was the toughest evening you produced during the run?

A. Andy Kindler & Ron Lynch were sick one night and I had to replace both of them on SHORT notice. Of course about 100 people came to the show expecting Lynch and Kindler… I prevented a riot by plying them with Asahi.

Q. Comedy Meltdown introduced quite a few comedians to myself and the nerderati that enter the store. Were there any breakout performers from the show?

Q. The quality of performance at CM was, to my mind, astonishing. Was there something about the room or the booking that contributed to consistent success, or are we just blessed with a lot of kick-ass comedians at this moment?

A. Thank you, to me too. I was lucky to have amazing headliners before the show really had legs, Dana Gould was on our second show for example… If good headliners build it, they will come. www.danagould.com

Q. Do you have secret plans for the future? Divulge them now and ruin the surprise! We won’t tell anyone!

A.Comedy Meltdown World Tour is looking for sponsors. I am also pitching CM as a show for the TV.

Q. I’m big on learning. What is the primary lesson to be learned from your experiences producing this show?

A.Comedians work their asses off.

Q. Could you expand on that a little bit? Are they better promoters? Do they always do more than expected as entertainers?

A. I just mean they go up every night, and sometimes more than once a night. Matt Braunger is a good example, many of the shows he’s done at CM were his second set of the night, but he always has the energy and just kills. www.mattbraunger.com

Q. You’re an actor, but you’ve been quite busy with Comedy Meltdown. Are you going to get back into the great game?

A. Yes, watching these guys and gals instantly produce once they get in front of the mike was inspirational to me.

I need to use that skill at every audition, and remember to roll with the punches.

Q. What did booking this many shows teach you about Los Angeles?

A. That there is always something great going on… and if people show up to CM it means that they passed on any number of awesome screenings, gallery openings, comedy shows, you name it! It’s been very humbling and I am truly grateful that CM found an audience.

Q. This drama may be over, but it’s really not the end. You are curating more than a few art shows at the Melt Gallery at Meltdown through 2010. Tell me about your current installation and what’s next on the agenda?

A. My current show is called An Aurora of Polar Bears: A Children’s Primer. and it’s 26 original works based on terms of venery. My dad, a zoologist, wrote the introduction. I am hoping to make a children’s book (for smart children) out of it. February 27th will be Night of the Knick-Knacks or Return to Oz, all works inspired by the film. http://gallerymeltdown.wordpress.com